Episode #31 "Bought And Paid For"


Ferrariman

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  • 1 year later...

In my opinion another good episode that continues the strength of Season 2. This is also quite an unusual episode in that there are a lot of light, comedic moments, and some very dark and haunting scenes as well.Highly for me of the entire episode was the car chase. This is also my favourite Vice car chase ever. I love how the director managed to get the scene to end where Crockett is standing with a perfect view of the downtown Miami skyline in the background. That was obviously no accident.The guy with the ponytail who was in the "artificial sweetner drug deal" was also the production designer in Vice. I saw him being interviewed in "Miami Vice: The E Hollywood story".I like how when Switek and Zito find the bug van missing, all Switek can think about is the fact that his lunch was also in the van.Watch the cat when Arroyo strokes it when he turns up at Gina's apartment. Even the cat doesn't like him!I think this is the only episode where you see the Daytona's hood up. If you notice, the weather looks very changeable throughout the episode. I remember reading something once which was talking about Michael Mann's commitment to detail, and how he insisted on watering down an entire section of a street in one Vice episode, to make it look like it had rained. I have always wondered if this was the episode. There's a scene where Gina goes to Odette's house after she's committed suicide, and the street is wet. It might just be coincidence, and it just happened to be storm season when the episode was filmed, but I wondered if MM had done this to emphasise the dark and depressing mood of the scene. But then again this is something you would expect the director to be doing, not Michael Mann.I love the music in this episode. El Debarge might sound cheesy these days but I still like the tunes they were playing. I also thought that Jan's music was well constructed. If you listen to his background score when Arroyo first comes to visit Odette in Gina's appartment, the music sounds all light and happy and innocent (like Odette herself) , then as soon as Arroyo enters the scene, the music starts turning dark and harder, reflecting his evil presence.I'll give this episode 8.5 out of of 10.

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The undoubted highlight of this episode is the awesome Daytona / Lambo chase. All I can say is wow. A series highlight in my book.The rest of the episode is good but a bit too chick flicky for my liking.I'd give this 7/10

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I guess you guys couldn't wait for me to unlock this episode! How many people have the capability? :confused: This is one of my favorite episodes because I love to see slime like the no good rich punk, Arroyo, get his just desserts! Let's start from the beginning. Some light-hearted fun in the opening with Switek & Izzy. I dig the colors of Gina's house, blue walls, melon colored fridge, etc. Even her clothes & Trudy's match the rooms they are in. The car chase is great & Sonny kicking Arroyo's Lambo gives me a thrill! He treats him rough & has some good lines about him & his cologne, which ultimately condemed him. This is definitely Gina's episode. She has more lines & air time than previously. Odetta really made a bad decision in taking the $10,000 for her mom, because she was now bought & paid for, and she made an even worse decision to kill herself. Very sad turn of events. There is a question of if Gina was right in shooting Arroyo, since he threw the switchblade away, but he didn't stop when she told him & rather than get raped, she did away with a piece of persistant garbage. I like all the music especially "Rhythm of the Night" which I'm adding to my repatoire. I rate it 9 .

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Firstly, Santiago isn't the best of actresses and she isn't overly brilliant in this, but she's improved from some of her season 1 stuff and is certanly better than most of her later performances.Anyway this aside, what a fantastic episode, one of the best. Ultra style, fab car chase thats only beaten by the one in down for the count, great performance by the rapist, some fantastic scenery, some thudery/rainy scenes again brilliant. Crocketts performance is top notch, really is. Excellent episode with one of my fave scenes of the whole series, the car chase, which was immensely brilliant, only downside being santiago's sometimes weak acting. 9/10

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My wife almost puked when Arroyo said : "I'm rich, I'm beautiful, why would I rape?" Even his own father couldn't stand him!

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There is a question of if Gina was right in shooting Arroyo' date=' since he threw the switchblade away, but he didn't stop when she told him & rather than get raped, she did away with a piece of persistant garbage. [/quote']It seems to me (I'm sure the police officers here can answer this) that as I've understood it, that if someone breaks into your home, and you feel your life is threatened, you legally have the right to kill. His record would show he has already been arrested for entering a house (actually,the same house) and rapeing someone, and his fingerprints were on the knife too.
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I think you are dead on, Coop, but maybe Jurassic Narc will weigh in (or other members of law enforcement).

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I think Tommy Vercetti summed this up best as a chick flick. A distant early warning to the "Hell Hath" but with some good music to lift it to an 8 for me.

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I guess you guys couldn't wait for me to unlock this episode! How many people have the capability? :confused:

That would be me. I was online late Sunday night and felt like voting so...
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Didn't mind this ep at all. Great car chase, as others have mentioned. Liked the way the OCB really seem to be enjoying working as a tight team, eg.chinese food towards the end. (Something about that seems to remind me of the end of Theresa where Rico does the same for Sonny!).Another thing that came to mind was the death of the young Haitian girl - seemed like something similar to a scene in Heat when Pacino arrives on the scene of the death of a girl Wayne Grow has just murdered and the mother arrives on the scene also and Pacino has to comfort her. Hmmm Mann does like to re-use some of his ideas eh?!A great dark plot about the poor victim of a rape being bribed, which came across as a very sad but also very credible story. Actress playing the rape victim did a good job, as did others in the ep, so some good casting in this one.Santiago didn't do a bad job in this one - her dejected look at the death scene of the girl towards the end is also similar to Sonny's look at the end of the Good Collar it seemed.But the rapist is one heck of a stupid nut isn't he? Not only does his father think he's stupid, but come on, trying it again on the police officer who has it in for you? Doesn't he think she might sleep with a gun by her bed or even under her pillow? What use did he think a knife would do with her?! What an idiot...I do feel that last scene is something they've put in as an afterthought. Almost like the audiences would be outraged at such an ending if he simply got away with rape, so we 'want' to see justice. Here's a thought for you though - if this was Season 3 do you think they'd have had that last scene in there? I doubt it - Season 3 was a touch more dark and my guess is they'd have had the rapist getting away scotch-free...I think worth a 7.5 - had they let the rapist get away I might even have upped to an 8 as with MV the darker it gets, the more I seem to love it! For the poll though I think I round down to 7 as 8 overscores it as it is - other eps are more worthy of an 8 IMO.

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Legba, you nailed some key 'features in this episode. Stan's lunch, the cat and everyone loves the car chase...I love how the road had the little keys and yes, the city in the back round and the kicking of the Lambo...Classic!! I also feel the series starting to take off with the style(clothing and houses) and the decor of Gina's place...Cool!! The filming in the rain and the Daytona having the top up shows again it isn't always sunny in Florida for those who never been there....I liked it and yes, a little chicky for me too, just classic Vice...Mike

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Guest neworder
I do feel that last scene is something they've put in as an afterthought. Almost like the audiences would be outraged at such an ending if he simply got away with rape' date=' so we 'want' to see justice. Here's a thought for you though - if this was Season 3 do you think they'd have had that last scene in there? I doubt it - Season 3 was a touch more dark and my guess is they'd have had the rapist getting away scotch-free...[/quote']This is a decent point, when I first viewed I was expecting it to end without gina killing him but yeah it happened. I think ur right too, if it were season 3 he probs would have got away with it, kinda of a Hackman style ending...
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There definitely feels like more darkness and despair in Season 3 and even several season 4 eps - in a way I prefer the realism - the truth is that a lot of times the 'bad guy' does get away, sometimes literally, with murder. I always thought that Death and the Lady 'belonged' to Season 3 rather than 4 for example - a great dark ep where the guy should be caught but isn't, and even slapping the b****** seems too good for him!

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I've mentioned this before, but indulge me. Not only was Arroyo a reprehensible bastard -- I thought it was hysterical that he was so full himself when he looked just like Lyle Lovett!

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I think the VERY worst thing about this episode would be Gina's line (a version from the popular Dirty Harry line of the time, "Go ahead, make my day"), "Go ahead, give me an excuse."I groaned at that line....Yet as bad as that line is, I seem to remember either her or Trudy doing yet ANOTHER version of that line somewhere else in the series. Just can't remeber where....Other than that, I like the episode very much.Must mention JAN HAMMER's score which was very awesome!!

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I think the VERY worst thing about this episode would be Gina's line (a version from the popular Dirty Harry line of the time' date=' "Go ahead, make my day"), "Go ahead, give me an excuse."I groaned at that line....Yet as bad as that line is, I seem to remember either her or Trudy doing yet ANOTHER version of that line somewhere else in the series. Just can't remeber where....[/quote']"Go ahead pretty boy, just give me a reason" Gina in Fruit of the Poison tree, pretty much her only line in the episode and it was **** lol.
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My original review from March 13, 2006OK, warning this is long! This is one of my favorite episodes from Season 2 and one of my favorite episodes overall. I call it one of the Sonny and Gina episodes. Although the Special Romance between the two are over, you can see they still have a special relationship with each other. There’s also a nice blend of comedic moments to lighten the serious topics dealt with in this episode mainly rape, trying to nail it on a member of the privileged class, and the manipulation of Odette. Also the whole OCB gang is in this episode. First: the Manipulation of Odette by Gina Gina sets the whole thing up (inadvertently) by asking Odette a favor and then rewarding her with a new dress, If Gina had not rewarded Odette with the new dress she wouldn’t have been half dressed when Nikos Arroyo arrived, in fact if Gina had not asked her to do this, Odette would not have been alone in Gina’s apartment, she would have either been in her own place or still at the store. This may also explain Gina’s Obsessive behavior toward Arroyo, colored by the fact she still remembers her own rape (as she mentions to Sonny). Mistaken or not, Gina feels responsible for it, and needs to punish the perpetrator. She pushes Odette to press charges (She even admits this to Sonny after she comes to realize what she’s done.) 2nd: Manipulation of Odette by Arroyo: Nikos Arroyo rapes Odette, and then tells her he’ll have her deported back to Hati, if she tells anyone so she lies about the description of the rapist. Later on she tells Gina the truth, but only after Sonny told Gina the evidence pointed to Arroyo the guy Sonny originally booked as the rapist. Arroyo’s papa finds out, and fixes it so it goes away by giving money to Odette’s mom. After he does so, Nikos comes to Odette’s apartment and tells her he owns her, and proceeds to have his way with her again, after which she slits her wrists because she can’t live like that, and feels it will go on. 3rd: Manipulation of Odette by her mother The general and his attorney gets Odette’s mother to fly to Miami, and meet her at the airport. They take her to the General’s house, and talk to her, and give her money to get her daughter to drop the charges. – Odette returns home to find her mother in her apartment, and the next day she and her mother go to the police and have the charges dropped. Odette does it because the money means her mother and sisters will be provided for their whole life, and not have to worry about not having enough to eat or a decent place to live. She’s also treated to a ride in the limo to the airport to see her mother get on an airplane first class, and then is dropped off at her apartment by the limo. Sonny and Gina: Sonny and Gina are not only colleagues. (She’s with him in the Daytona this time waiting for the bust to go down) but friends. He readily accepts an invitation to dinner after work and leaves with her in his car. He’s concerned about Odette, but more concerned about Gina as he shows in his conversation to her on the phone at the hospital. He tells the trace evidence guy that this one is special, probably because it’s bothering Gina so much, and because it was in her apartment. He evidently arranges for the night out with the gang, so Odette can wear the new dress, Gina has given her, at least Gina kisses Sonny on the cheek and thanks him because this was what Odette needed. He also looks at Gina when Gina says she’s going to nail Arroyo with concern, afraid that Gina is too involved in the case. (Btw, where did Odette get the purse to perfectly match her dress? Gina says nothing about giving Odette shoes and a purse to wear with the dress. I’m pretty sure these wouldn’t be in Odette’s closet.) Sonny tries to break the news to Gina that Odette dropped the charges, and warns her that her mother was with her when she did so. Later when Gina storms out of Castillo’s office, Sonny takes it upon himself to try and talk to Gina after Trudy admits she’s tried. That’s when we get Gina’s comment that Sonny has a short memory when he points out it was Odette who was raped not Gina. Sonny immediately looks chagrined and obviously knows what Gina’s referring to. Later on it’s Sonny who listens to Gina come to the realization she hurt Odette when she promised never to, by pushing Odette to do what Gina wanted to do, and maybe if she was a scared 18 year old with no money she would have done the same thing. Sonny is trying to comfort Gina by rubbing her shoulders and arms, but tells her maybe Odette would like to hear that. Afterwards when it’s too late to save Odette, Sonny calls Gina at home as soon as Trudy tells him that Gina went home and looked down. He tries to cheer her up, but then says he’ll buy her breakfast in the morning. Gina knows Sonny so well, she’s able to convince Sonny she’s just going to sleep, and keep from him the fact she baited Arroyo. I often wonder what the next scene after her shooting him in ‘self defense’ would have been. (more on that later) Music: The use of music is especially good in this episode. From Jan Hammer’s chase music, to El De Barge’s two songs and the other two used in this episode. Just listen to the words. The Hammer music used to accompany Sonny chasing Arroyo in the Lambordighni (sp?). The music was played first accelorating the speed to a fast tempo, and then gradually slowed down at the end when the chase was finally over. She wears it well – could describe Odette’s wearing beautiful clothes and being out dancing. Rhythm of the Night “… Forget about what’s on your mind you can leave it all behind the Rhythm of the night….” – Could describe Odette’s situation, or even the OCB Gang’s case although it wasn’t very far from Gina or Sonny’s mind, since they were talking about it. I’m so Afraid….. Perfect song to play in the background to express Odette’s feelings as she returned the dress to Gina after Gina expressed disgust at what Odette and her mother did (take the money and drop the charges.) It’s like she realizes there’s no one to help her she’s all alone like she’s always been. Cold wind blows. “You got to fight for what you believe in…..” - the lyrics are a very good description of Gina’s and Odette’s friendship, and was perfect in that spot. The ending: I love the ending, very satisfying emotionally (I love seeing Arroyo getting blown away!!!!!) but not too realistic. I’m not complaining but I’ve always wondered: 1.There were witnesses to Gina’s coming to Arroyo’s home and talking with him, baiting him. Arroyo’s father was a big banker dude, and ex military wouldn’t he have clout to demand payback or at least an investigation and if that failed to have Gina on a hit list of some sort? 2.Castillo would have seen through Gina’s action, wouldn’t he have called her on it, or would he allow it because he couldn’t and didn’t want to prove or investigate it? (sort of like Castillo never questioned Hackman’s demise by Crockett.) 3.Even if Gina wasn’t investigated, wouldn’t have Castillo had Gina ‘on the beach’ because she had killed a human being (even in self defense again)? 4.Wouldn’t have the police had to have come to her apartment if nothing else, to clean up the mess and take the body away! I love this episode, and I can sit down and watch it anytime, but because of the ending, and the basketball gym as the night club, I’d have to give it a very strong 9.7 instead of the 10 I’d really like to give it 5/26/2009 - I still stand by what I said in 2006, but since our point system is 1-10, because for me this is not quite a perfect episode I'd have to rate it a 9 even though 9.7 would normally round-up to 10. (I'm also thrilled that I got to walk the floors of Gina's appartment when Dan J took My husband an me MV locations looking :D)

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I too thought that the ending was a bit disjointed with the rest of the episode. Personally I didn't get the feeling that they necessarily added it in as an afterthought, I just think that they were desperate to wrap up the story and felt that Arroyo was so evil that he had to die in some way. It just felt a bit contrived, like they were struggling to try and come up with an idea for how to end it, and I thought that it was a bit unrealistic. Arroyo must have been a complete idiot to continue to move towards Gina with a knife while she's pointing a gun at him, threatening to shoot him. He was asking to get killed.I think that Gina shooting the guy dead would definately create an IAD investigation. Based on the physical evidence, it was a righteous shoot. He was an intruder on her property, and his prints were on the knife, not hers. However, there were several witnesses at Arroyo's place who saw Gina come to visit him after Odette killed herself. Everyone (both at OCB and Arroyo's playboy friends) knew how personally involved Gina was. As a result she'd probably at the very least be suspended while IAD tried to determine whether or not she lured him over to her place. What I noticed was how similar the scene where Gina visits Arroyo near the end, and the scene at the end of "Deliver us from Evil" where Crockett visits Hackman were. In both, Crockett and Gina are standing over their own personal nemesis, looking emotionally cold, wearing shades, while the Nemesis is sat at a table. If you watch both scenes, they were both filmed in a very similar way.I also thought that this episode was like a signature episode for the materialism of 80's, a story about how money could buy people, and this was summed up in it's title "Bought and paid for".

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It was a very justified shooting (even if the viewer thinks it could or even should have been written differently).I'll go thru it again....It was just mentioned that Gina came and visited Arroyo at his father's house with several witnesses.1. Gina did not break in. She was let in willingly, and freely most likely by the maid.2. Her reason to visit was to personally come and deliver the news that a former employee, Odette, had committed suicide. When Odette committed suicide, they would now know the case was over because of her death. Gina was no longer a threat.3. The people at the pool who saw Gina there to deliver the news (that a former maid had committed suicide), spoke only Bollivian. They didn't appear to speak English. They would not have known what she said, and even if they did, they would only have heard the exchange we heard. The guys at the pool seemed to be more interested in giving the approval of the pretty lady (GINA) standing there wearing designer clothes. 4. She didn't threaten his freedom or his life, or invite him over. 5. Arroyo walked a little ways out of earshot when Gina mentions the word rape outloud knowing he would rather the guests not hear that. They then continued their talk in lowered voice privacy. She did speak the truth that she thought he was a snake, and before Odette killed herself ending the investigation, she still thought he raped her in her own appartment. Here's the set up by Gina.....1. She visits him, letting him know that by Odette's suicide, he's no longer a suspect under investigation.2. She makes cetain that Arroyo now knew that Odette was raped in HER appartment. It's were Gina currently lives.3. She wore very fancy, and somewhat sexy clothes. Not the jeans and tank tops she wore when Arroyo saw her. She'd be looked at as a pretty woman, not a cop. 4. Even when talking to Arroyo, she still gives a hint of flirting, like saying things like, "You couldn't handle it" with a smirk. 5. She appears to leave the front door unlocked, making it inviting.6. She turns down dinner plans with her friends, and says she wishes to be alone to make certain that she would be there, and alone if Arroyo did happen to take the bait, and come over.7. He did come over, he did test the door, which was unlocked, he did carry a weapon.8. He walked towards her.9. She told him to drop the knife. He did, but she legally could have shot him the moment he entered the appartment.10. She told him not to move.11. He didn't comply, but continued advancing toward her despite her "Don't move" commands at gunpoint by someone he knows is a cop.12. She then shoots, and ultimately kills him.She set him up alright, but there would be nothing Illegal about that.She didn't even have to say, anything to him once he entered here place. She could have shot to kill someone who had raped someone in the very same appartment the moment she saw him enter with a knife.It's justified.Once again. This may not be the ending that everyone wanted, but it sure was justified.

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Episode 31

What I noticed was how similar the scene where Gina visits Arroyo near the end, and the scene at the end of "Deliver us from Evil" where Crockett visits Hackman were. In both, Crockett and Gina are standing over their own personal nemesis, looking emotionally cold, wearing shades, while the Nemesis is sat at a table. If you watch both scenes, they were both filmed in a very similar way.Wow, I never saw that before. Good pick up, PL!MJ
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It was a very justified shooting (even if the viewer thinks it could or even should have been written differently).

Oh don't get me wrong, It was certainly justified in the sense that Arroyo had it coming to him, and Gina was right to shoot him. But how I see the story continuing would be Arroyo's millionaire father being very pissed off, and demanding answers (even though would have known that his son would have probably been up to something he shouldn't have). He would have probably hired an expensive lawyer who would make a point of arguing that Gina came over to visit Arroyo in order to lure him over to her place (even though there was no proof i.e his friends didn't know what was being said during Gina and Arroyo's private conversation away from the pool). Gina would have been suspended while IAD looked into this, but ultimately, her argument that she only went over to tell Arroyo about Odette's death (which was the truth), could not be disproved either, and the evidence would show that at the end of the day, Arroyo came over to her place with a knife, she was at risk, and was protecting herself. Therefore she would no doubt end up in the clear. Gina would however have probably been cautioned about the act of going over to see Arroyo in the first place though i.e "What were you trying to prove by going over there to tell him in the first place?". It would have been seen as being unprofessional, and potentially leading the police into a civil suit.Regarding the ending, I thought the only specific problem was that IMHO, I don't believe even Arroyo would have been dumb enough to carry on walking towards Gina with a knife when she's aiming a gun at him and threatening to shoot. The act of Arroyo stalking Gina in itself (considering that he already knew where she lived, and that stalking women was his thing anyway) was credible.
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Not quite as excited for this one as I was back when I wrote my first review of this. The car chase was exciting of course and provided one of the silhouettes for GTA: Vice City's opening credits plus Joaquim De Almeida of Desperado was great here as he usually is. The overall plot though is like Tommy said, a bit too chick-flicky. Still solid enough for a 7/10. 

Edited by agent 47
New review due to Blu-ray viewing.
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I give this episode a 7. It had a very sentimental and heart felt theme to it. As Gina was going out of her way to get a rapist convicted, but he managed to slip through the cracks every time. Only in the end did it finally catch up with him.

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